Zero tolerance should be the approach to reduce corruption

Zero tolerance should be the approach to reduce corruptionThis refers to the report Dirty cops to lose medals (January 5). It’s heartening to read that the guilty officer, Rathore, is being stripped of his medals. The Home Ministry has done the right thing by taking disciplinary action against the corrupt officer, as this incident will serve as a warning to other wrong-doers in future. Let’s hope this move makes people in positions of power more accountable to the people and deter them from taking advantage of the helpless.Ratan Sharga, Lucknow

Governors have lost their sheenThis refers to Ramachandra Guha’s piece The fitness test (History Matters, January 4). Guha has rightly stated that since the governor, as the executive head of the state, has many responsibilities to perform, he must be chosen on the basis of administrative competence and not on the basis of party loyalty. As an emblem of trust, the governor must act in an impartial and apolitical manner and not as an agent of the party in power at the Centre. It is unfortunate that today the august institution of governors has come under a cloud for negative reasons. All political parties should learn a lesson from the recent events at the Hyderabad Raj Bhawan. RK Malhotra, Delhi

IIRamachandra Guha rightly calls for more prudence among those appointing governors. It’s regrettable that only a handful of governors are seen as competent and honest, while a vast majority are mired in controversies. It is terrible to see how the hallowed corridors of the Raj Bhawans have been sullied. A broad consensus needs to be developed on the selection process of governors to save the Raj Bhawans from the clutches of controversy and shame.Karan Thakur, via email

Voting: no more a choiceThis has reference to the report Mandatory voting anti-poor (January 5). The Gujarat government, presumably to draw in more votes, has taken an autocratic decision to enforce compulsory voting in the state. It is strange how in democratic India where our Constitution allows us the right to freedom of speech, expression and exercising independent will to one and all, the Gujarat government should insist upon mandatory voting. While the present-day voter in India is intelligent enough to cast his/her vote for the right candidate, any compulsion to vote will be counter-productive.PP Talwar, via email

The Congress should come cleanThe government’s decision to permit a European Union (EU) delegation to visit the Kandhamal area in Orissa, which has seen the worst violence against Christians seems to be politically-motivated (EU team to visit Kandhamal, January 5). The sole purpose behind this exercise seems to be designed to allow the EU countries to gain a skewed impression of the BJP, thus undermining its credibility. If the Prime Minister is convinced enough to term the Kandhamal atrocities as a matter of national shame, he should also condemn the 1984 Sikh massacre and invite a delegation from the UN to interact with the families of the victims.Keshav Prasad, via email

Shoddy effort to tackle terrorismThe report Three Pak terrorists on the loose in Delhi (January 3), speaks volumes for the Indian government’s determination to fight terrorism. It is ridiculous that a single policeman was given the responsibility of escorting three terrorists. It’s time for the home ministry to review its lackadaisical approach towards handling terrorism.JN Mahanty, Puri